Week in Review: The top stories in phones, AI, computing, and more

Apple crashes the launch-event party, Gemini Pro 3.1 is here, Google Pixel 10a launches
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February 20, 2026
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Welcome
 
 
Intro – Marc
Life is about to get very busy. Okay, so it’s never really slow around these parts, but even so, the next couple of weeks will be a whirlwind of product launches and keynote speeches, of hands-on first impressions and deep-dive reviews, of new phones and tablets and laptops and much more besides.
 
To be clear: I’m not complaining. This is what we live for here at TechRadar (although it might be nice if brands could space things out just a little bit). And trust me, there’s plenty to look forward to.
 
Such as? Well, there’s the little matter of an Apple event the week after next. We already have some strong suspicions about what to expect at the launch, and the good news is that it looks like being a big one — and some will argue that it needs to be, because Apple has been on the back foot lately following some underwhelming releases and major delays to the Apple AI/Siri rollout. 
 
Before that, though, there’s the little matter of Samsung’s first Unpacked of the year, which takes place next week, and at which we can confidently predict that we’ll meet the Galaxy S26 series. With the MWC 2026 mobile tech expo also taking place in early March, and Google I/O on the calendar for May, it’s all go from here.
 
It was very much not all go for YouTube this week, with the platform suffering a big outage that took it offline for some users for more than an hour. Hopefully that won’t happen again — but if it does, you can entertain yourself by watching one of our top streaming picks for the week.
 
And… relax.

Marc McLaren, Global Editor-in-Chief
 
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The week in Apple
 
Apple event invite
The invite doesn't give much away (Apple / Future)
5 things to expect at Apple's big March event
Apple has confirmed a launch event for March 4, and while we've not heard much officially, we have a pretty good idea about what is and what isn't going to make an appearance.
 
Read the full story
 
 
iOS 26.4 will bring these 5 upgrades to your iPhone, but not a new Siri
 
 
Android 17 beta 1 is here — and it's got some big changes
 
 
Apple is rumored to be working on a whole bunch of AI devices
 
 
 
 
The week in AI
 
Gemini Pro 3.1
Google has pushed out a new AI model (Google)
Gemini Pro 3.1 more than doubles its AI reasoning power
Google just pushed out a major update for its Gemini AI, promising more than double the reasoning capabilities – so why are some users unhappy about the upgraded model?
 
Read the full story
 
 
A psychologist on what worries the people trying to make AI safer
 
 
Futuristic humanoid robots dominate China's most-watched TV show
 
 
I used AI to find the right perfume for my wife, and I don't regret it
 
 
 
 
The week in Phones
 
The Google Pixel 10a
Meet the Google Pixel 10a (Future)
The Google Pixel 10a is now official
Google has launched a new mid-range Android smartphone at an attractive price point, and it's a rarity for being a phone with a fully flat back — we've got all the details.
 
Read the full story
 
 
The Xiaomi 17T and 17T Pro are set to be very iPhone-like
 
 
Have your say – how long do you keep your phone for before upgrading?
 
 
The Samsung Galaxy S26 could have the most AI camera ever
 
 
 
 
Today's best deals, hand-picked by TechRadar's experts
 
TechRadar
These are today's best Google Pixel 10a preorder deals at US carriers and store
We've compared all the preorder deals on the brand-new Google Pixel 10a — and these 4 are easily the best
 
View US deals
 
 
8 unmissable laptop deals at Amazon, Best Buy and Dell, with prices from just $199
 
 
Currys launches a new Epic Deals sale — these are today's 13 best deals on TVs, headphones, appliances and more
 
 
Get the brand-new Google Pixel 10a for as little as £104 with a trade-in at the Google Store UK
 
 
 
 
The week in Computing
 
A man sat in front of a laptop
Windows users are praying for improvements (Viktoriia Hnatiuk / Shutterstock)
Microsoft is finally starting to fix Windows 11
Microsoft has gone on the record promising that it will fix some of the big reliability and performance issues in Windows 11, and it looks as though updates are already on the way.
 
Read the full story
 
 
Here's a priority PC building list for surviving the RAM crisis
 
 
Has AMD's FSR caught up with Nvidia's DLSS? This survey suggests not
 
 
New report shows painful reality of graphics card price hikes
 
 
 
 
The week in Entertainment
 
Rental Family movie still
Mari Yamamoto and Brenan Fraser in Rental Family (Searchlight Pictures)
The best new movies and shows to stream this weekend
From The Night Agent's return to fan-favorite actor Brendan Fraser's latest movie, you've got plenty of streaming choices this weekend – and we've covered all the major streamers.
 
See our top picks
 
 
James Gunn's Superman sequel might have a new title
 
 
We may know where Spider-Man: Brand New Day sits on the MCU timeline
 
 
Everything we noticed in the House of the Dragon season 3 trailer
 
 
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